October 19, 2015

Wet Weather at Port of Paranagua Delays Brazilian Corn Exports

Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.

Heavy rains caused by El Nino are not just causing problems for farmers in southern Brazil, they are also disrupting the corn exports out of the Port of Paranagua in southeastern Brazil. As of last Friday, the Administration of the Ports of Paranagua and Antonina (Appa) reported that there have been 7 days in October during which corn loading were suspended due to wet weather. That follows 10 days in September during which no loading occurred due to wet weather.

The result has been that some vessels are expecting to wait up to 40 days to load corn, which is in stark contrast to last year when there was no waiting at all to load corn. As of last Friday, Appa reported that 60 vessels were waiting to berth at the public corridor to load grain or soybean meal and that 39 of those vessels were waiting to load corn. If these delays persist or get worse, it is possible that buyers may switch the origin of some of their corn to Ukraine or the United States.

A record large Brazilian corn crop and a devalued Brazilian currency has led to an increased demand for Brazilian corn. Conab is estimating that Brazil will export 27.2 million tons of corn in 2015, but thus far this year, only 12.5 million tons have been exported. With only two and a half months left in the year, the pressure is building to increase the pace of corn exports. Unfortunately, the forecast continues to call for heavier than normal rainfall in southern Brazil for the next several months, so it may be difficult to reach 27.2 million tons of corn exports.